James grew up on an Ozarks farm where tools like axes and picks were still used in the daily routine and the blades of stockman's pocketknives served their original functions. Receiving his first pocketknife at age four he got it open by himself nearly a year later and spent his formative years wandering the woods with a succession of ever larger knives, a book of matches and a rifle.
A veteran of Vietnam, James also served in Alaska during a stint in the Army, receiving his first intensive culinary training by setting a record for extra KP at Ft. Richardson.
Settling in the Pacific Northwest after his discharge, James crewed on sailing yachts in local races, backpacked hundreds of miles of mountain trails in search of good trout fishing, and occasionally attended college.
His first serious job as a civilian resulted from answering a Seattle Post Intelligencer want ad requesting someone who could lift 120 pounds repeatedly and wasn't afraid of fire. James apprenticed to John Frazier -- the most knowledgeable traditional foundryman in North America at that time -- for the next six years.
Returning to the Ozarks James made his living by growing ginseng on a hand-terraced wooded hillside and selling handmade wood turnery, furniture, sculpture and architectural carvings. James harvested trees from his own land, processing logs into posts and beams and turnery billets with saws, axes, froes and planes. Since many tools he needed were no longer available, James built his own forge from a barbeque grill, a vacuum cleaner and a 55 gallon steel drum, found a chunk of railroad track for his first anvil, and taught himself blacksmithing -- creating his own knives and tools from scrap steel and sweat.
Changing economic pressures eventually forced James back to the restaurant industry in Branson, Missouri, and later to even more success as a maintenance engineer for one of Branson's largest condominium resorts. Finally escaping to Indiana, James now makes his living telling true stories as a freelance writer.
Case Whittler Damascus Pocket Knife 6092 | High Carbon Devin Thomas Steel
56 sec read
Since 2006, W.R. Case has offered a select few types of knives with special high carbon Damascus steel instead of the high carbon stainless steel in common use today. The Case 6092 Whittler Pocket Knife released in August of 2010 is one of the latest examples.
The Damascus steel used in the Case Whittler comes from the Devin Thomas Damascus steel foundry and is one of 15 patterns currently produced there. Devin Thomas spent years learning the forging of Damascus steel and created distinctive Damascus patterns with hammer marks applied during the forging process. Ground and polished into the final shape of the knife blade, the steel layers reveal geometric designs like the concentric circles of the raindrop steel.
The Case 6092 Whittler uses this raindrop Damascus steel in all three of the knife’s blades. The knife offers clip point blades in large and small sizes and a penknife blade. Damascus steel gives the blades extra strength as well as unusual beauty, and the high carbon steel alloy provides the long-lasting edge a whittler prefers. A drop of oil rubbed across the blades occasionally prevents corrosion.
When folded, the 2.1-ounce Whittler measures only 3-1/2 inches, a perfect size for the average pocket and still big enough to offer a secure grip. Natural India stag handle slabs add non-slip texture.
If you’re interested in going beyond simple whittling but still prefer a pocket tool set, consider the Flexcut Carving Multitool.
James grew up on an Ozarks farm where tools like axes and picks were still used in the daily routine and the blades of stockman's pocketknives served their original functions. Receiving his first pocketknife at age four he got it open by himself nearly a year later and spent his formative years wandering the woods with a succession of ever larger knives, a book of matches and a rifle.
A veteran of Vietnam, James also served in Alaska during a stint in the Army, receiving his first intensive culinary training by setting a record for extra KP at Ft. Richardson.
Settling in the Pacific Northwest after his discharge, James crewed on sailing yachts in local races, backpacked hundreds of miles of mountain trails in search of good trout fishing, and occasionally attended college.
His first serious job as a civilian resulted from answering a Seattle Post Intelligencer want ad requesting someone who could lift 120 pounds repeatedly and wasn't afraid of fire. James apprenticed to John Frazier -- the most knowledgeable traditional foundryman in North America at that time -- for the next six years.
Returning to the Ozarks James made his living by growing ginseng on a hand-terraced wooded hillside and selling handmade wood turnery, furniture, sculpture and architectural carvings. James harvested trees from his own land, processing logs into posts and beams and turnery billets with saws, axes, froes and planes. Since many tools he needed were no longer available, James built his own forge from a barbeque grill, a vacuum cleaner and a 55 gallon steel drum, found a chunk of railroad track for his first anvil, and taught himself blacksmithing -- creating his own knives and tools from scrap steel and sweat.
Changing economic pressures eventually forced James back to the restaurant industry in Branson, Missouri, and later to even more success as a maintenance engineer for one of Branson's largest condominium resorts. Finally escaping to Indiana, James now makes his living telling true stories as a freelance writer.
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Since 2006, W.R. Case has offered a select few types of knives with special high carbon Damascus steel instead of the high carbon stainless steel in common use today. The Case 6092 Whittler Pocket Knife released in August of 2010 is one of the latest examples.
